It was afternoon and Hugo was busy working on documents in his office when the scent of tea drifted into his nose. He knew someone had come in but he was focusing on something else so he didn't pay much attention.
After a while, he looked up, glancing at the cup of tea that Jerome had placed quietly before leaving then he put his pen down on the table and leaned back in his chair. He picked up the cup of tea and walked into the balcony, deciding to take a short break.
Because of the incoming party, the garden was filled with a lot of people busying around. He looked around the garden, searching for his wife. He found her soon enough at a corner of the garden but she was not alone. She was with a black-haired child, Damian.
'They're really friendly with each other.'
He muttered to himself, frowning slightly. Looking at it objectively, their relationship was one where they could never get too close to each other. He was a little worried about her taking Damian to the garden party because a considerable amount of people would be suspicious about her intentions.
He considered telling her about his thoughts but shoved that idea away. She would know at least that much, she wasn't a foolish woman.
Although, it was interesting that Damian was getting along with her quite well. The child wasn't a very sociable boy but within a few weeks, he was made into an obedient puppy.
Even his butler Jerome was the same. 'Milady', 'Milady', was all he could say.
She seemed to have the amazing ability to turn people to her side. Even though many people liking her was definitely much better than them being her enemy, for some reason, he felt displeased inside.
'What are they doing?'
For a while now, the two of them had been crouched low and their heads were facing each other. He couldn't see what they were doing nor could he see their faces properly because he was too far away.
'What the heck are those two doing?'
He grumbled inwardly.
'Without me.'
Those last words were what was truly in his heart but because he was so childish, he couldn't even bear to say it to himself.
* * *
Lucia and Damian were so engrossed in watching the amusing baby fox that they weren't paying much attention to anything else. The big-eared yellow fox had awkward steps, toddling as it walked.
Whenever it tried to escape from between the two of them, it was gently blocked with one hand. It didn't take long for it to give up on escaping, sit down and begin chasing its tail.
[He's a rare mild and gentle guy for a fox. He'll be easy to tame]
This was the common remark that the experienced breeders, which Kate sent to help, made after looking at the fox.
"Did you decide on a name, Damian?"
"Lucia, is...is it really okay for me to name it?"
"Of course. I'll be happy if you name it."
After Lucia asked him to give the fox a name a few days ago, Damian had worried about it for a while and rummaged through all sorts of dictionaries while his studying took a back seat.
"Then...Asha." (Damian)
"Asha? Does it have a meaning?" (Lucia)
"Just like the name... I want it to be very healthy and live long."
"Asha. That's a good name."
Lucia lifted the fox and held it out to Damian.
"Since you've given it a name, hold it. Don't just look at it."
"Lucia, I..."
"Hurry up. I'll drop it."
As the time it was held up in the air grew longer, the baby fox began to struggle and wriggle around in her hands. Once he heard her say she'd drop it, Damian quickly reached out and carefully took the fox into his arms.
Asha lifted its long snout, looking at the boy for a moment, then it relaxed in his arms. The body temperature and the sound of fast-paced heartbeat of the small animal in his arms shocked Damian. It was a new sensation to him.
His emotions felt complicated and his body trembled. He felt like he hadn't know what it meant to be alive until this moment.
"I feel...strange."
"Why?"
"Just...it's not like I hate it but I feel weird. My chest feels a little tingly...."
Looking at Damian who didn't know how much strength to put in his arms as he held the little fox, Lucia smiled.
"Damian, that feeling means you think it's loveable."
"Love...able?"
"Yes. It's the feeling your mother must have felt when she held you after you were born. You feel something is so loveable, your heart hurts."
Damian stared silently at the fox with for a while, his expression unknown. The fox squirmed in his arms, adjusting itself to a more comfortable position then it placed its chin on the boy's arms, blinking its eyes.
Damian lifted his head to look at Lucia, smiling brightly. It was the clear smile of a child, no darkness hidden within. The first carefree smile of the boy who was always stiff and brusque sent a burst of emotions through Lucia, deeply touching her.
Her gaze met Damian's and she smiled at him.
A little distance away, Hugo's red eyes trembled strongly as he gazed at them. Unable to curb his curiosity, he had finally left his office. He walked towards the corner of the garden where they stayed crouched and at some distance, he was able to see why they weren't paying attention to anything else.
'What is that?'
The sight of the little beast wriggling around and the two of them concentrating on it like a never-seen-before treasure in the world came into view. As he drew a little closer, he was able to hear their conversation.
'Giving a beast a name? a useless act.'
The white horse he'd ridden for so many years still had no name.
'...Lucia...?'
Hugo furrowed his brow.
When he heard the name in the evening when they were taking a walk, he thought he had heard wrong but he was still somewhat sensitive to the name. This time, he had definitely heard it, and clearly too.
Why would Damian call her by that name?
It wasn't Duchess, it wasn't Mother and it wasn't even her name. He stopped walking, standing still to think about it but couldn't reach a conclusion so he resumed his journey.
However in a couple of steps, his footsteps paused again.
Looking at the boy's smile that was as bright as sunshine, his heart clenched, filling his chest with biting pain.
'Hah...'
He sighed mournfully.
'It's you.'
He smiled powerlessly. The child's smile was very similar to the one his brother had given him on the day they'd met.
He just hadn't realized it but it seemed the brother that he'd been missing had always been by his side.
Hugo's memory returned to the first day he met Damian, the scene vividly drawn out before him.
One day, Philip brought in an awkward young child that was yet to walk smoothly. Even without being explained, the child's black hair and red eyes were traits unique to the Taran bloodline.
He left the child in Jerome's hands and when he was alone with Philip, he question the man fiercely.
"What is that?"
"He is young master Hugo's son."
At first, he was at loss for words then he became enraged. A male child? Without a relative, a boy of Taran blood could never be born.
"Don't be stupid. That late old geezer must've planted a seed somewhere, who are you trying to fool?"
"Haven't you ever heard of young master Hugo having a lover?"
He cursed furiously before retorting.
"What? That old fool's tricks?"
He was so angry, he felt like he was going crazy.
"No, it is not . Young master Hugo and the miss fell in love without knowing each other's identity and young master Damian is the result of their love."
"Love?!! Bullshit!"
In that moment, he hurled curses at his late brother.
'You fucking idiot. After acting like you know it all, you've finally done it.'
"Why didn't my brother know his child was born?"
If his brother knew he had a child, he never would have chosen to kill himself.
"Young master Hugo passed away without knowing that young master Damian was conceived."
"Did the old geezer also not know?"
"Yes."
'Hah. Serves him right, the old fool needs some retribution in hell.'
He muttered to himself, chuckling insidiously.
"What of the child's name? Did you give it to him, old man?"
"I wouldn't dare. Young master Damian's mother gave him his name."
"Mother?"
He remarked mockingly.
"She must be my half-sister. Here I thought they were all dead but there's a half-sister. How many children did that old fool make?"
"Just as you know it, however from childhood, the miss had a weak body and was frequently ill. The late Duke determined that she would be unable to have a healthy child and decided to dispose of her. Hence, the late Duke believed the young miss to be dead."
"Disposal. Ha! That's exactly the type of thing that crazy old fool would do."
He ridiculed icily.
"So? This half-sister of mine that's supposed to be dead, how did she meet him, do this love play and give birth to a child?"
"I can only say that destiny is indeed something that cannot be predicted. I can also assure you that there was no ulterior motives or interference in their relationship."
"Destiny? What crap. Where's the child's mother?"
"She passed away after giving birth. If you want a more detailed explanation..."
"Enough."
As to whether or not they really knew each other's identities, or whether or not there was outside interference in their relationship, there was no way for him to know.
No matter how long Philip rambled on, it was impossible to guarantee that it was the truth. Rather than listening to the old man's bullshit, he switched his focus to the problem at hand.
"So? What? Why did you bring him to me?"
Even if it was his brother's child, he was not his late brother.
His brother was born the son of the loathsome former Duke and had a completely different personality like the different entity he was. Moreover, his brother wasn't informed that the child was born so bringing the child now made him suspicious.
"He's young master Hugo's flesh and blood. It is only right to hand him over."
"Don't blabber that rubbish in front of me, take the child and leave. I don't know when I'll want to kill it if it stays around me."
However, Philip left Damian and secretly disappeared. He hid himself so well, not a trace of him could be found.
'Fine. Then I'll make sure that scum doesn't see a hair on the child's head till the day he dies.'
Hugo gnashed his teeth in rage and invoked a ban against Philip approaching Damian.
Time went by and sometime later, Philip secretly returned and tried to meet Damian but after seeing the guards around Damian, a report came back that Philip had once again disappeared.
Although the ban was something done in a fit of anger at the time, when he thought about it, he realized it was a good thing.
Because of the war, he was swamped and extremely busy so he got someone to mostly look after the child. There was almost no difference from neglecting the child.
When he returned to Roam several months later, they were all accepting Damian as his son. He'd never personally said that Damian was his son but no one thought that was an issue. This was because of how much they resembled each other. Both of them looked so much alike, leaving no room for doubts.
However, Damian's appearance caused Hugo's intention of ending the Taran family bloodline to amount to nothing.
Hugo's feeling towards Damian were delicately complex. His brother's only mark left in this world and mass of burden. It wasn't love nor was it hatred, he liked the boy just as much as he disliked him.
However, when he saw the smile on the boy, the smile that was exactly like his brother's, he realized something.
Just as he intended, the cursed Taran blood would end with him. His twin brother was a mutation that should never have come from the Taran bloodline. He was supposed to be born with a blood full of cruelty and madness yet unlike the Taran bloodline, he was gentle, pure and loved life.
And Damian inherited the blood of his brother.
The Taran Family, led by Damian, would be reborn in a completely new way.
Damian noticed Hugo approaching and quickly stood up. The fox was still in his arms and he was flustered by the sudden appearance of his father. Since he wasn't studying at this time and was busy chattering, he was afraid that he would be scolded.
Hugo indifferently glanced at the fox in the boy's arms then he spoke to Lucia.
"Wasn't the fox hunt just for sightseeing?"
"I meant to do that but Lady Milton told me she'd help me obtain a fox. It hasn't been long since I got it as a gift."
Hugo was unhappy with the trivial creature rolling around in Damian's arms.
'So now, she'll be going around with a beast in her arms too.'
First, frequent outings with Damian, now it's a fox. The road to keeping her at his side was so difficult. In his heart, what he really wanted to do was to keep her to himself alone so that only he could see her.
"Damian."
"Yes? Yes!" (Damian)
It was the first time that Hugo used Damian's name, directly in front of him. Before when he called Damian directly, he said
'Kid.'
And when he was conversing with other people and talking about Damian, he said.
'Boy.'
"Fox hunting is not a game for men. It's a trifling game for women. Return the fox to its master."
He commanded arrogantly.
Lucia was dumbfounded and glared at him. A trifling game for women???
Damian alternated glances between the two of them then quickly handed over the fox to Lucia. As he handed it over, none of the emotions from a while ago was present. He didn't even show the slightest dismay or lingering attachment.
Lucia gave a hollow smile.
"Follow me." (Hugo)
"Yes."
The boy quickly replied like a soldier with military discipline.
"Where are you taking him?" (Lucia)
"We're going to have a talk. Between men." (Hugo)
Hugo began to walk ahead and again, Damian alternated glances between the two of them then he bowed his head in Lucia's direction. After which he quickly ran after Hugo. Unlike the usually calm Damian, this one was obviously excited.
"My goodness. What? Are they excluding me?"
Lucia was speechless. She felt a sense of betrayal from the Damian who never looked back. The thought that all her efforts were less than one word from his father made her feel dispirited.
As she watched the departing backs of father-and-son, her dispirited heart didn't take long to disappear. Their similar back-view was very adorable. Damian's figure as he took exceptionally light steps was also fun to look at.
"Please, get close enough that I'll get jealous."
While chuckling to herself, Lucia turned towards the workers in the garden. There was still a lot of work to do for the garden party tomorrow.